Most experts agree with Dr. Pope on these strategies for optimizing homework:

• Establish contact. Take advantage of Back-to-School night. Ask every teacher what their expectations about homework are and how you can get in touch with them if you have questions. Most schools have a homework policy, but it’s important to understand how each teacher interprets the guidelines.

• Eliminate excuses. The most common devices teachers use for assignments are voicemail messages, the school Web site, or sites such as www.schoolnotes.com. Reluctant learners often avoid homework by intentionally not writing assignments down, or claiming they never have anything assigned. To put a stop to this, parents need to make kids call the teacher's voicemail or check the Web site in the presence of the parent.

• Set house rules. Meet with your teen to establish homework guidelines and expectations. There are essentially three times when homework can be done effectively—immediately after school, right before dinner, or right after—not before bedtime, school, or during another class.

• Provide support but don’t do the assignment. Help your teen learn time-management skills by reviewing due dates for overlapping exams and projects. Buy a jumbo calendar or a whiteboard to hang at home so your teen can keep track of deadlines. Be available during homework time if your child has questions, but don’t do the work yourself.

• Plan ahead. To avoid overscheduling, sit down with your teen and look at the semester ahead. Kids who take honors or AP classes will have greater amounts of work, and kids who are involved in extracurricular activities will have less time available after school. If your child is going to have a heavy academic load one semester, consider limiting outside activities.

• Create a positive environment with minimal distractions. “Providing teens with a setting conducive to study is every parent’s responsibility,” says Dr. Epstein. That means supplying a well-lit study space with supplies such as paper, pencils, and a computer (teens who don’t own a computer can use one at the local library). Since reading and mathematics comprehension require interacting with the words and concepts, your teen needs to concentrate. No TV, IM, or iPod until homework is complete.

• Back out slowly. Ultimately, your role is to help your child become independent, so that she won’t still be expecting you to manage her schedule when she enters college. It’s important for teens to advocate for themselves. Parents can encourage their child to go directly to a teacher and say, “Mr. Smith, yours is the third test I have on Friday, is there any way I can reschedule?”

• Resolve conflicts. If you still have concerns, or if your child is regularly dragging you in to help with essay writing or math problems, request a meeting with the teacher or guidance counselor to strategize solutions.

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Issue: October 2007